Standard Chartered Foundation has launched the second edition of its Women in Tech Accelerator in Egypt, targeting 12 women-led technology startups with business development, mentorship, investment-readiness support and access to entrepreneurial networks.

The 2026 programme is being delivered in partnership with entrepreneurship platform Entlaq and impact investor Village Capital, with three participating startups set to receive equity-free grants from a combined US$35,000 pool at the end of the programme.

Accelerating women-led technology businesses

The accelerator is aimed at women-led, technology-enabled startups in Egypt that have already demonstrated market validation and are preparing to scale.

Entlaq will deliver the local programme, providing specialised training and mentorship to help founders strengthen their businesses, refine growth strategies and prepare to engage with investors.

The initiative also seeks to address some of the challenges faced by women entrepreneurs, particularly limited access to finance, professional networks and specialised business support.

Mohamed Gad, CEO and Head of Coverage at Standard Chartered Egypt, said women-led technology businesses have an important role to play in Egypt’s innovation economy.

He said the programme would give founders access to skills and networks that can help them strengthen their businesses and prepare for expansion.

Building on the first cohort

The 2026 accelerator follows the programme’s first Egyptian cohort, which attracted 240 applications and supported 11 startups through more than 35 training sessions and over 40 mentorship sessions and roundtables.

This year’s programme will place increased emphasis on business development and investment readiness.

Running from September to December 2026, the programme will culminate in a final Demo Day, giving participating founders an opportunity to showcase their businesses and progress.

According to Village Capital, businesses supported through the 2025 cohort collectively reached almost 16,000 new customers, created more than 430 jobs and generated an additional US$2.7 million in revenue.

Village Capital Senior Programme Manager Yazmin Jumaali said the organisation will support the new cohort through its wider network and experience helping early-stage businesses improve access to financial and social capital.

Closing Egypt’s women-founder funding gap

The accelerator also responds to findings from Entlaq’s Women in Entrepreneurship Report 2025, which highlighted significant funding and support challenges facing women entrepreneurs in Egypt.

The report estimates a US$2.2 billion funding gap for women-led startups, alongside limited access to specialised mentorship and professional networks.

Entlaq Co-Founder and Programmes Director Aya Ismail said the accelerator aims to translate those findings into practical support that helps women founders build competitive, scalable and investment-ready businesses.

A wider push for women in technology

The Egypt programme forms part of Standard Chartered’s wider Women in Tech initiative, which has supported more than 4,000 women across 17 markets since its establishment.

Standard Chartered said more than US$600,000 in grant funding has been allocated to entrepreneurs across 12 markets this year.

In Egypt, three of the 12 participating startups will receive equity-free grants at the conclusion of the accelerator.

Applications are currently open to eligible women startup founders based in Egypt, with the programme scheduled to run from September through December 2026.

For Egypt’s technology ecosystem, the programme represents another effort to strengthen the pipeline of women-led businesses while improving access to the capital, expertise and networks needed to move promising startups from market validation to scale.